Trump Spars With U.S. Chamber Official Over Use of Tariffs

President calls into CNBC show where official appeared and attacked him and the Chamber

Myron Brilliant, executive vice president and head of international affairs at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said that threatening Mexico with import tariffs was counterproductive toward the goal of getting a new trade agreement with Mexico and Canada.
Photo:
wu hong/press pool

WASHINGTON—President Trump and the nation’s leading business lobby escalated a public tiff when a senior U.S. Chamber of Commerce official criticized his use of tariffs, and Mr. Trump responded by threatening to drop his membership in the organization.

Myron Brilliant, the Chamber’s executive vice president and head of international affairs, appeared on CNBC Monday morning and complained that Mr. Trump’s “weaponization of tariffs” doesn’t make for good trade policy.

Mr. Trump responded by calling in to the CNBC show and attacking the Chamber and Mr. Brilliant. Calling him “not so brilliant,” the president said tariffs have helped him work toward more favorable trade deals for the U.S.

The president said he is reconsidering his membership in the Chamber. “When you look at it, the Chamber is probably more for the companies and the people that are members than for our country,” Mr. Trump said.

The membership status of Mr. Trump and the Trump Organization wasn’t immediately clear. The White House referred questions to the Trump Organization, which didn’t immediately respond to an email seeking information. The Chamber also didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the matter.

The squabble is the latest public dispute between Mr. Trump and the Chamber. An article in The Wall Street Journal last month documented a long-running feud that has left the Chamber with little influence in the White House and diminished the power of the business trade association overall in Washington. The Chamber responded to the article by saying that its influence in Washington was “stronger than ever.”

The Chamber has strongly opposed the president’s use of tariffs on billions of dollars of imports from China and his threat of tariffs against Mexico, which had been set to be implemented on Monday. The association and its business membership also finds itself in conflict with the president on immigration policy and other matters.

On CNBC, the Chamber official said that tariffs “increase threats on our economy, on our farmers, our manufacturers, our consumers.” He added that tariffs would hurt the U.S. economy and create uncertainty with trading partners.

Mr. Brilliant said the goal should be to get Congress to approve a new trade agreement with Mexico and Canada by the end of the summer. Threatening Mexico with import tariffs doesn’t help that goal, Mr. Brilliant said.

Mr. Trump responded by saying that tariffs help the U.S. win better trade deals. “Look, without tariffs, we would be captive to every country and we have been for many years,” the president said.

“We lose a fortune with virtually every country,” Mr. Trump said. “They take advantage of us in every way possible, and the U.S. Chamber is right there with them.”

The Chamber released a statement after the president’s comments saying, “We recently called on the White House and the Mexican government to come together and reach a deal to protect American consumers against tariffs. We are glad to see that the President is no longer going to impose tariffs on American consumers and businesses.”

On Friday, Mr. Trump dropped his threat of tariffs on nearly $350 billion of Mexican imports after negotiators reached a deal on measures to stem the flow of migrants pouring into the U.S. from Mexico. The deal averted a potentially devastating trade fight for both countries: Some $40 million an hour in goods crosses into the U.S. from Mexico.

The Chamber and other business groups had voiced alarm in recent days over the impact of tariffs, while Mr. Trump’s tariff threat left an undercurrent of tension between the president and many Republican lawmakers, who opposed the Mexico policy.

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